Stolen bicycle recovered

Howdy. Tonight I will say that I've got a history of being overly attracted to people getting back their bikes that had been stolen. Even if the rightful owner doesn't get his/her bike back, it gives me a warm feeling to know the thief no longer has the bike.

After several incidents of retrieving bikes from thieves; all done with the help of the police, we humorously started calling our shop "Crimestopper Bike Shop" whenever discussing issues of stolen bikes.

Recently, Tim, or as Gretchen and most women seem to call him, Timmy, came in to tell us his bike had been stolen when he was visiting his girlfriend in Santa Barbara. Hers was stolen as well. The bikes had been at the end of a long driveway and I can't remember if the bikes had been locked or were deemed safe from theft due to being not visible from the street.

About three or four weeks later, Tim's girlfriend saw what she figured may be her bike advertised on Craigslist in Santa Barbara. She contacted the seller and made arrangements to meet him at a park, (at his suggestion). Before going to meet him, she called the police and made arrangements to call them if the bike was hers. She took some friends along. The bike was hers, the cops were called, the cops came and the "seller" was taken away in handcuffs.

Good enough. Tim's bike wasn't recovered but he now has plans to give the theif an ultamatum. If he doesn't get his bike back he will resort to civil action/small claims court. I think Tim will win if comes to that.

Another happy ending.

Chuck